Peach Iced Tea in the Instant Pot

Pressure cooking is amazing at infusing flavors in minutes rather than hours. Honestly I am not even sure how long it would take to make peach iced tea if I had to wait for it to infuse the peach flavor naturally but I'm guessing quite a long time and probably some amount of muddling.

My trusty Instant Pot makes all of this unnecessary. It makes peach iced tea in one minute! Ok, it really takes more like half an hour because the full pot takes quite a while to come to pressure, if you've been pressure cooking a while you know how misleading those cook times can be! #realtalk

This tasty beverage is also a great option for healthy living it is Whole 30, Paleo and zero points on Weight Watchers (green, blue and purple). If I am feeling fancy, I add carbonation to it with my Drinkmate beverage fizzer. If you haven't tried sparkling peach iced tea, you are missing out. Be careful though it fizzes A LOT.

Take the tag off!

Ingredients

8 cups of water

2 family sized tea bags (I use Lipton Cold Brew)

1 can of peaches in 100% juice

optional: sweetener of your choice (none for Whole 30)

Directions: Put water and peaches (do not drain!) in your Instant Pot. Remove any paper tags from your tea bags and add to the pot. Set Instant Pot to sealing, manual pressure for 1 minute. Turn off the "keep warm" setting. Following the end of the cook time, allow to naturally release for at least 5 minutes and then quick release the remaining pressure.

When I'm following Weight Watchers, I add 1/2tsp of Lankato Monkfruit 0 calorie sweetener (0pts) to each large glass! This is not Whole 30 or Paleo compliant though.

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Dairy-free, fluffy mashed potatoes

While you can make mashed potatoes by simply smashing up your potatoes the fluffy, creamy potatoes that many of us are accustomed to eating usually involves some kind of dairy - butter, milk, cream or actually in my family, we really like to add cream cheese to ours.

The dairy really transforms them into another dish. So, how do you make them dairy free but still decadently delicious? Well, you might think I am crazy but coconut milk or more specifically, coconut cream. The creamy/solid part of a can of full-fat coconut milk.

I promise you will not taste coconut in these potatoes at all. It's amazing to me how close the taste is the dairy laden potatoes of my childhood.

Ingredients

2 lbs potatoes, diced into 1" cubes, peeled if desired or not

1 can full-fat coconut milk

2 Tbl ghee

Spices - whatever you like in your mashed potatoes, I use garlic, salt and pepper.

Cooking equipment: potato masher or hand mixer

Boil your potatoes until they are soft in enough water to cover them, about 20 minutes. Drain the water and add the coconut milk using only the solid coconut cream, reserving the liquid from the can. Add the ghee and spices to your taste. Mash the potatoes, I use my kitchen aid hand mixer to mash. If the potatoes are too thick you can use some of liquid from the can or additional ghee until they are your desired consistency.

I like to mix a little extra ghee in when I eat them too. :)

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Dairy-free ranch in your blender!

You are not going to believe how much this non-dairy dressing tastes like ranch! I am shocked myself and I am a ranch aficionado. 

This dairy-free recipe makes a smallish batch and be made in a personal sized smoothie blender and it's perfect for lactose free, paleo or Whole 30 diets. I made it because I'm doing Whole 30 and one of the biggest W30 challenges is condiments or sauces to liven up vegetables that you eat by the truckload. But also, you are supposed to have "plated fat" with every meal and this counts!

I mix it up in my Epica smoothie blender and it's filled to the top. My blender is 20oz if yours is smaller, it will be too small for recipe as written as it basically fills my blender. The nice thing about making this recipe in a smoothie blender, is I can use the top as a convenient pour spout.

When it's first mixed, it's a little thin. If you chill it about 30 minutes it will be perfect consistency but you can eat it right away. If you know you are going to eat it immediately you can use less of the "watery" part of the coconut milk when you blend it so it's thicker.

Ingredients

1 can full fat coconut milk (see note on making a thicker dip)

1 egg or 1/4 cup liquid egg

2 Tbsp of red wine vinegar

juice of half a lemon or about 1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp garlic powered

3/4 tsp onion powder

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp ground black pepper

Cooking equipment:

Blender with at least a 20oz capacity

In the blender

Put all of the ingredients in your blender and mix for 2-3 minutes until well blended. You may serve immediately or chill for 30 minutes for a thicker consistency. Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Please note this recipe contains raw egg. Consuming raw egg can increase your risk of food-borne illness.

If you want a thicker dip, don't use all of the liquid in the coconut milk.

 Do not allow the ranch to warm to room temperature and then put it back in the fridge for consumption later as it contains raw egg. 

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Taco skillet casserole - 2 points on Weight Watchers

Are you looking for a one pan dish that is quick and easy to make? Look no further than this taco skillet casserole!

This dish uses cooked rice to come together really quickly, or if you don't have rice that's already cooked you can cook the rice right in the pan by adding 3/4 cup dry rice and 1.5 cups of water. The dish will take about 25 minutes longer if you use uncooked rice and cook it in the pan. I use leftover rice from the night before's dinner.

The whole recipe is only 10 points on Weight Watchers blue plan (formerly Freestyle) and it's easily 5 servings, making it 2 points for serving. Top it with a little cheese and sour cream for extra points. You can also roll it up in a in wrap for a burrito, I like to do this the next day for lunch.

If you are looking for another great one-pot meal, you can also try my un-stuffed pepper skillet. It's similar but more like a stuffed pepper than a taco flavor. 

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1.25 lbs 99% FF ground turkey (you can also use beef or higher fat turkey but it will increase the points if you are following Weight Watchers; my photos show lean beef)
1-2 packets taco seasoning, ideally low sodium
1 14.5 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
1 14.5 oz can of corn
1 14.5 oz can of black beans
1.5 cups of cooked rice

Optional toppings:
Shredded cheese
Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Wrap or taco shell

Cooking equipment: Very large skillet or high-sided pot or Dutch oven (preferred)

Directions:
Spray pan with cooking spray and turn on medium heat, add ground turkey and season with 1 packet of taco seasoning. Brown the meat until fully cooked, about 5-7 minutes.

Add tomatoes, corn, black beans and cooked rice. Stir. Add a second packet of taco seasoning if desired for a spicier/more flavorful dish. If the mixture appears dry (especially an issue with low fat meat) add up to a .5 cup of water. Allow to warm fully and simmer uncovered about 5-8 minutes.

Top with cheese and sour cream or yogurt,if desired and serve.

When made with 99% FF ground turkey, the recipe is 10 total points on Freestyle. Dividing it into 5 servings makes it 2 points each, excluding any optional toppings. The 5 servings are pretty generous portions, easily 1 cup.

This blog is not affiliated with Weight Watchers in any way. This post may contain affiliate links, if you make a purchase using one of these links this blog may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support.

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Streusel French Toast

If you are looking for an easy, seasonal breakfast for Thanksgiving look no further than this pumpkin streusel french toast made in your slow cooker! It's easy and delicious.

The great thing about a slow cooker french toast is you can throw it in early and it cooks while you get anything else you are having ready. I put mine in, cleaned up the house a bit, took a shower and then fried some bacon. Meanwhile it cooked on low in my Crock Pot.

Ingredients:
For French Toast:
Cooking spray
1 loaf of French bread
2 cups of cream
6 eggs
1 small can of pumpkin puree
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
For streusel topping:
1/2 cup of flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
4T of butter (1/2 a stick)
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon

Topping, just needs butter

If using 2 cups of heavy cream is too much for you, I can see how it would be, you can substitute milk. Probably also almond milk or other non-animal milks, though I haven't personally tried this yet.

Cooking equipment:
Large slow cooker, I use a 6qt oval Crock Pot
Pastry blender (or large fork)

Directions:
Tear or cut bread into 1 inch pieces. Mix eggs, cream, pumpkin puree and spices, with a whisk ensuring that eggs are beaten and well-incorporated. Spray slow cooker crock with cooking spray and add bread pieces, covering them thoroughly with liquid and spice mixture. Stir until all bread pieces are lightly coated. Refrigerate in crock for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Shortly before you begin cooking, you need to prep your streusel topping. I don't suggest doing this the night before but it's pretty quick in the morning, it takes maybe 10 minutes. The butter needs to be close to room temperature, I microwave mine for about 30 seconds to achieve this. When your butter is warmed, add all streusel ingredients to a small mixing bowl and blend with your pastry blender or large fork until they are well mixed.

Just prior to cooking, sprinkle the top of the bread mixture with the streusel topping. Cook in slow cooker on low temperature for 2 to 2.5 hours and serve.

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10+ ways to use almond milk

There are many reasons to use almond milk in place of milk in your diet. It's vegan, good for people who are lactose intolerant, and lower in calories even than skim milk. However, I love almond milk because it doesn't spoil as fast as milk or cream. It can be kept on hand for weeks before being opened and stays fresh at least 10 days afterwards (many brands are shelf stable until they're opened). We just don't use enough milk to make it worth buying so I try to use almond milk as a substitute where ever I can, so I don't have to buy milk.

There are a bunch of different kinds of almond milk available and different varieties work better for different things.

Plain: no sugar and no flavoring - the best for general cooking
Sweetened: sugar but no other flavoring added
Sweetened, Vanilla: sugar and vanilla flavoring added
Unsweetened, Vanilla: no sugar but vanilla flavoring added - I basically only use this when I'm on a low carb diet, in place of sweetened vanilla.
Chocolate: I only use this if I want to drink it straight or perhaps for a chocolate breakfast smoothie.

So where can you swap almond milk for milk? And which kind of almond milk is recommended?

1. As creamer in your morning coffee (sweetened, vanilla)
2. To replace cream in a quiche (plain, unsweetened), here's a quiche recipe using almond milk.
3. To replace cream in a fritatta (plain, unsweetened), here's a frittata recipe where you can try it.
4. On your morning cereal (plain, sweetened)
5. To make instant oatmeal (sweetened, vanilla)
6. To make instant pudding (sweetened, vanilla)
7. Drink it! (sweetened, vanilla or chocolate!)
8. To make a quick breakfast smoothie (sweetened, vanilla or plain)
9. To thin your mashed potatoes (plain, unsweetened)
10. In a corn bread mix (I've personally done this with the Aldi cornbread mix)
11. Add to a soup to thin it out such as butternut squash soup
12. To make pancakes or crepes

Almond milk crepes

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Un-stuffed pepper skillet

I have been really into skillet meals lately and experimenting with some quick, healthy and tasty meals lately!

One of my favorite dishes is stuffed peppers but I don't like cooking all of the ingredients and then baking them until the peppers are soft - too time consuming! In the winter, I do a "stuffed" pepper soup that is quick and easy but I'm not quite ready for soup season yet, so I cooked up a this un-stuffed pepper skillet. While, I call this a skillet meal, in my opinion, it's easier to make in a pot with higher sides or Dutch oven as a skillet will be really full.

The whole recipe is only 10 points on Weight Watchers Freestyle and it's easily 5 servings, making it 2 points for serving. Top it with a little cheese and sour cream for extra points.

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1.25 lbs 99% FF ground turkey (you can also use beef or higher fat turkey but it will increase the points if you are following Weight Watchers)
1 packet chili seasoning, ideally low sodium
1 14.5 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
2 large bell peppers, any color, diced
1 14.5 oz can of black beans
1.5 cups of cooked rice

Optional toppings:
Shredded cheese
Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Cooking equipment: Very large skillet or high-sided pot or Dutch oven (preferred)

Directions:
Spray pan with cooking spray and turn on medium heat, add ground turkey and season with chili seasoning. Brown the meat until fully cooked, about 5-7 minutes.

Add tomatoes, diced peppers, black beans and cooked rice. Stir. If the mixture appears dry (especially an issue with low fat meat) add up to .5 cups of water. Allow to warm fully and simmer uncovered about 5-8 minutes.

Top with cheese and sour cream or yogurt if desired and serve.

This recipe is easiest if you already have cooked rice on hand but if you don't have rice ready to go, you can either A) put some in the rice cooker about 10-15 minutes before you start browning your meat or B) you can add uncooked rice and water to cook it to your pan and allow it to simmer covered together for about 20 minutes until your rice is fully cooked. This is a delicious option but a little more time consuming.

When made with 99% FF ground turkey, the recipe is 10 total points on Freestyle. Dividing it into 5 servings makes it 2 points each, excluding any optional toppings. The 5 servings are pretty generous portions.

This blog is not affiliated with Weight Watchers in any way. This post may contain affiliate links, if you make a purchase using one of these links this blog may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support.